Whether it's true or not remains to be seen but it is actually a really good, solid, worthy exposee.

This is such a cracking story and can you imagine the faces on the NOTW executives when the games were going on - what if the no balls failed to happen - where would all that money go?
But there is a word that springs to mind - entrapment.
If you're a penniless sportsman (are there any - relatively - these days?) could anyone resist taking a load of cash to do something fairly unimportant? But it is the thin end of the wedge.
So our question is - where is the line?
A fascinating story and a tremendous one, almost warranting the existence of the horrid Fake Sheik.

Yes, much as I loathe their usual antics, this seems a real news story. Watching the actual clips today I'm gobsmacked - that wicketkeeper against Australia a while back was so blatantly ignoring stumpings and catches I'm surprised an investigation didn't happen then and there!

And nobody seems to have pointed out the most important thing of all; the accused Pakistani bowler is gorgeous!

Naughty JK - off with your bails!

JK2006 wrote:
And nobody seems to have pointed out the most important thing of all; the accused Pakistani bowler is gorgeous!

I'm stumped.

JK2006 wrote:
And nobody seems to have pointed out the most important thing of all; the accused Pakistani bowler is gorgeous!

Will he get 'bailed',or will JK find himself 'in a spin'? Or worse,will he get down to the juicy part,only to find he's been 'no balled'?

Puntastic.

Can I just call "bad light stops play" before this conversation gets any worse

Sport seems very tainted by gambling and most people are very cynical. The NOTW has for once potentially unearthed what is going on in sport and not just cricket. Money has undermined our society throughout history. Greed has caused wars and slavery - and now the honesty within the sports which were based on gentlemanly conduct.

Cricket has suffered much in the last 10 years with scandals - but this one could be the final nail.

As Brian Johnston once said, you should stand with your legs apart and your hands together and wait for a tickle.

And moving ahead from my disgraceful (but true) passing comment on the physical appeal of young Amir, since he and others are so young and inexperienced, I think justice should be tempered by mercy in this case and a slap on wrist would surely be all that's needed (though those behind it might warrant more serious punishment). After all, the victims are sleazy bookies who deserve all they get. Not taking away from the magnificent scoop, let's try not to ruin lives whilst retaining the integrity of sport.

It's a pity they can't do something about the spot betting (or whatever it's called!) itself. I don't bet at all, although I can understand why people love the odd flutter, but this trend for betting on everything from who gets a throw-in in a football game to who has a no-ball in a cricket match is really like an alcoholic being encouraged to keep guzzling meths. When the betting gets that silly and obsessive there's hardly any wonder that scams start up, or that young players from poor backgrounds get drawn into the system. It's so much easier to rig it's practically begging for cheating to happen. But of course sport benefits from betting so much it won't bite the hand that feeds it, and will settle instead for sacrificing some of its own young talents.

Moving on to a Morality Issue - suppose a TV newscaster was told he'd get £10,000 if he winked at the camera at the end of his sixth story and people bet on it, should he be fired?

Or if the Fake Sheik took £10,000 to put a comma into the twentieth line of his story where it shouldn't be; would he get the sack?

It does seem risibly confused. After all, cricket seems to have indulged 'cheating' for most of its history, from WG Grace grandly ignoring the fact he's LBW to Larwood and Co's 'bodyline' series and on to 'sledging' and all the rest of it, so it seems that cheating for money is the issue, yet it's a bit rich now that cricket has sold its soul to commercial interests, and happily indulges in crass ads on the grass, ghastly pyjama-outfits decorated with countless ads and pig-snout shindigs masquerading as serious '20/20' events, for the authorities to get all uppitty when players get swayed by money. Maybe what they object to most is the fact these characters cheated in such an amateurish way!